BARRIE, ONT. -- Health officials in Simcoe Muskoka report more than 100 COVID-19 cases Friday and another death linked to the virus.

The region's health unit logged 106 infections in the last 24 hours, for a total of 430 new cases this week, a significant dip from the week before, which had 712 cases reported.

The death count reached 219 after a Simcoe County woman, 65 to 79, passed away from COVID-19 Thursday. So far, in April, 16 residents have lost their lives to the disease.

To date, the health unit has confirmed 9,824 infections. Of those, 8031 individuals recovered.

There are currently 1,149 active cases in Simcoe Muskoka, including 47 hospitalizations.

Muskoka

The health unit reports the District of Muskoka is experiencing its first significant spike in cases.

According to the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit, Muskoka has its highest positivity rate since the start of the pandemic at 6.4 per cent compared to Simcoe County's 5.3 per cent. The provincial positivity rate is at 7.9 per cent.

Muskoka makes up about 3.6 per cent of the region's overall numbers since infection rates spiked in March.

Hospital capacity

"I would really encourage people to listen, to follow the directives," said Muskoka Algonquin CEO Natalie Bubela.

Hospital officials continue to encourage residents to follow safety measures, like wearing face masks, even outdoors, and socially distancing as COVID-19 continues to overwhelm the health care system.

In Barrie, Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre (RVH) has accepted more than 60 patient transfers from overwhelmed GTA hospitals. "Our ICU is full, and we have just opened a third COVID unit," RVH's chief communications officer Suzanne Legue posted to Twitter on Thursday.

Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. David Williams, said the province was waiting to see how the new restrictions influence infection rates. "We are just starting to see the impact of the stay-at-home order, and we need to watch it closely."

The stay-at-home order took effect in Ontario on April 8 and will remain in place until at least May 20.

Variants of Concern

Variant strains of the virus are attributed to driving case counts to record levels. In Simcoe Muskoka, 2,166 cases tested positive for the UK B.1.1.7 variant. Another 29 cases were identified as the P.1 variant (Brazil), and two cases tested positive for the B.1.351 variant (South Africa). An additional 544 cases require further testing after screening positive for a variant.

Vaccines

Meanwhile, the number of COVID-19 vaccine shots given to area residents nears 176,000.

The Ontario government announced Friday pregnant women of all ages are now eligible to receive a vaccine.

Residents 40 and older can book an appointment for the AstraZeneca vaccine at select pharmacies, while individuals 60 and up can register for their shot through the province's online portal.

A full list of residents who qualify for a COVID-19 vaccine, how to register and where to get the shot is available here.